With the 2025-26 season officially ending for the Atlanta Hawks, Jonathan Kuminga has become eligible for unrestricted free agency. Atlanta has control over the situation with a club option, but their choices are limited to bringing him back for just one season or declining and negotiating what he likely wants to be a long-term deal.
A club option and a qualifying offer may not be identical contractual inclusions, but the Hawks now face the same question as the 2025 Golden State Warriors: Should they keep Kuminga long-term or risk him leaving for nothing a year later?
A year ago, Kuminga entered restricted free agency. He experienced a turbulent four-year tenure with the Warriors, which led the two sides to seemingly agree on the need for change. Unfortunately, the ideal path forward proved all but impossible for Kuminga and Golden State to agree upon.
From the Warriors' perspective, the only available options were to sign Kuminga to a multi-year deal or risk a one-year contract that would allow him to leave one season later—with no return on their initial investment.
Atlanta is now stuck in a similar boat with two options at its disposal: Accepting his $24.3 million club option or negotiating a new deal. There's risk involved with either potential decision, including the same potential for Kuminga to sign elsewhere after just one year if the option is accepted.
It's unfortunately familiar territory for Kuminga and the source of a franchise-altering decision for a Hawks team that's seemingly on the rise.
Jonathan Kuminga: Re-sign long-term or risk a 2027 departure?
Kuminga played well for Atlanta, showcasing an ability to provide value on both ends of the floor. His teammates spoke positively about him and head coach Quin Snyder played him all 12 minutes during the fourth quarter of multiple playoff games.
Those facts seem to point to an easy choice: Re-sign Kuminga to a multi-year deal and invest in his value to a team with which he seems to fit.
The hurdle facing the Hawks in committing to such a future, however, is the delicate balance of both their rotation and salary cap table. On the court, Kuminga has appeared in a grand total of 22 games for the Hawks—a painfully small sample size to base a long-term decision on.
What truly complicates the matter of gambling on Kuminga's long-term development, however, is that the Hawks are back in the playoffs due in no small part to their financial savvy.
Jalen Johnson, an All-Star who should make All-NBA in 2025-26, is the Hawks' highest-paid player at a bargain price of $30 million per year. Second is Dyson Daniels at $25 million per season, and no other player besides Kuminga is owed more than Onyeka Okongwu at $16.1 million.
With team-friendly contracts across the board, 22 games of context, and the risk of losing Kuminga for nothing, the Hawks will risk their future in the same way the Warriors did a year ago.
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